questions about lake travis dive sites ..............and hopefully some answers

[scubashawn123]

Does anyone know how this swim through grotto hole (tunnel) formed in Lake Travis?






NEXT question for the swamp...........What is the story behind the license plate on the log off of Bob Wentz state park? Who put it on the log? When? Who's license plate was it?







More questions to follow the answers swampers...................speculation is welcome on these Lake Travis Scuba site questions.........

 

[driftwood]

Hi Shawn,

Having spent more time looking at pre-dam photos of Travis than any sane person should, here is my best guess.

Starting at 600' above sea level there is a very large and dense layer of limestone, call it five feet thick. Think of the ledge at the top of the Shaker Plant, same formation (there is a similar layer at about 700' exposed at Windy Point private by stairs 1 and 2). The limestone under it is much looser and tends to erode quicker in floods. This erosion will be more intense on the outside of a bend in the river when there is a flood.

Another suspect is if there was a seep spring from a hill above the grotto. Some of the holes in the wall below the Oasis were partially formed through this mechanism. These tend to be a lot narrower and deeper.

 

[carlislere]

Shawn,
Regarding your first question the grottos in Lake Travis formed in one of two ways, or a little of both. When the sea level was much higher, they could have formed at that time a few million years ago. I am sure the building of Mansfield Dam and the rising and lowering of the lake level for the last 70 years has had something to do with it also.
The majority of the grottos in Lake Travis are found at 600 ft MSL. We have been diving them for decades. The one in the video was actually bigger at one time. Sediment has shrunk the size of the hole. My son and I found a grotto on Thursday to the south into the lake at Bob Wentz Park. We entered the overhang of the grotto at 18 minutes dive time and came out at 24 minutes dive time; a pretty long overhang.
Regarding the license plate. It has been there for awhile. I don't remember when it was put there. There have been cars, motorcycles and bicycles dumped there before and have rusted away over the years.
We had a car in Mansfield Park cove for years, but some instructors, from a dive shop I will not mention, attempted to float and move the car one night to Windy Point park only to lose the car on the way. So, there is a car out there in the middle of the lake between the two parks. I don't know where it was dropped and the instructors involved are no longer around, that I know of.

 

[scubashawn123]

This is why Scubaboard is so informative and a real value to the dive community in Texas. Keep your opinions and comments coming.

So far,

Question 1: swim through
Question 2. Where did the plate come from?


New Question 3: What is the HISTORY of the scoreboard?

 

[bogrady]

Shawn,
.... The one in the video was actually bigger at one time. Sediment has shrunk the size of the hole. ... .

Time to do some digging and return it to its natural size ....

 

[carlislere]

New Question 3: What is the HISTORY of the scoreboard?
I would be interested in reading about the scoreboard as well.

 

[cavemn]

Time to do some digging and return it to its natural size ....

Technically it is in a natural state...maybe time to try side mount

 

[bogrady]

Technically it is in a natural state...maybe time to try side mount

Would it work if I just turned sidways?

 

[DM Gary]

Shawn, I'm pretty sure the scoreboard is from UT Arlington. Don't know the reason why it's down there. My brother is a diver and UTA grad. I'll check with him, see if he knows who put it there.

 

[cavemn]

Would it work if I just turned sidways?

I think back mount is possible if you were to ditch any pony or stage bottles. We'll see on Sunday